Dolly Parton Seizes Her Rockstar Moment

Dolly Parton has been described as a living legend, one of the world’s most loved celebrities and a national treasure. All of the above are accurate—but still, they can’t quite seem to sum up just what she means to people. The country crooner’s decades-long music career has seen 47 of her albums (yes, you read that right) reach the Top 10 on Billboard’s country chart and is bookended by a massive songwriting catalog of an estimated 3,000 tracks—including smash hits “I Will Always Love You,” “Jolene” and “9 to 5.” She’s a Golden Globe-nominated actress and the first country singer to reach EGOT-nominated (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony) status. She achieved those astonishing feats after growing up in a one-room log cabin in rural Appalachia—the fourth of 12 children born into a poor farming family.

But despite the massive success and overwhelming number of accolades, she’s never forgotten where she came from. Time and again, Parton uses her platform to do good for others—whether that be donating $1 million to coronavirus research, part of which was used to help develop the Moderna vaccine, or giving back through her Dollywood Foundation’s Imagination Library program, which gifts over 2 million free books every month to children around the world. And, of course, who could forget her trademark blonde updo?

In a world governed by an ever-expanding attention economy, Parton’s quiet confidence and humility shine like a beacon of light. Last May, after being nominated for 2022’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, she made waves by pulling out of the running, justifying the decision in forever-charming, self-effacing Dolly fashion by saying she didn’t feel she’d earned the right. “It was always my belief that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was for people in rock music,” she later told NPR after eventually deciding to accept the honor. “I have found out lately it’s not necessarily that. But if they can’t go there to be recognized, where can they go? And so I felt like I was taking away from someone that maybe deserved it certainly more than me since I never considered myself a rock artist.”

Now, “rock artist” is one more title Parton can add to her long list of achievements. Determined to do justice to her Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction, Parton announced that her next project would be a rock album, the first of her career. Out of the ashes sprung the aptly-titled Rockstar, Parton’s long-anticipated 49th career LP. The album is a monstrous undertaking, spanning a whopping 30 tracks (21 covers of classic rock songs along with nine originals) and featuring more than 40 guests.